New Delhi: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Thursday that India and Britain are eyeing an interim trade deal amid talks of a free trade agreement (FTA). British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will visit India from Friday, Shringla informed, speaking virtually from New Delhi at the India Global Forum (IGF) in London.
This will boost the partnership as the visit coincides with the UK’s Carrier Strike Group (CSG) arriving in Mumbai for a joint exercise.
“We are negotiating a free trade agreement. We are also looking at an interim trade agreement,” Shringla said. added.
The Foreign Secretary said that his counterpart Sir Philip Barton, Permanent Under Secretary in the UK’s Office of Foreign Affairs, Commonwealth and Development (FCDO) is expected to take the trade talks forward in India.
Meanwhile, Barton expressed enthusiasm for the trip, saying “we should be very optimistic. Things have really accelerated, and we should be very excited”.
“The real opportunity lies with the UK’s place in the world. We have left the EU and are in charge of our international trade and commercial policy and have changed the way we migrate to this country,” he said. Shringla noted financial markets, people-to-people ties through new migration and mobility partnerships will remain high on the agenda apart from the first consular dialogue.
“Security and defense cooperation is high on the agenda, including maritime security, cyber security, health partnerships, digital health, medical supply chain, alternative health and science and technology,” he said.
“We had a disastrous [COVID-19] wave but since then we have done everything we can to protect against the impact of the COVID pandemic… Today is a milestone for India’s immunization programme, we have crossed one billion doses and this is a pandemic. Against we have the biggest insulation,” he said.
In the context of the UN COP26 climate summit hosted by the UK in Glasgow next month, the foreign secretary said India would participate with a strong message and also expected promises of projected finance to meet the ambitious climate goals.
He said, “We are probably the only G20 country that has completed our NDC [Nationally Determined Contributions] and defeated them. Our Prime Minister has said that India will not only meet its goals but will go beyond them. And, he has spoken to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. We intend to move forward with a strong message of full commitment to COP26.”
(with inputs from PTI)
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